You
can change the sorting column of the table below by first clicking anywhere in
its header.Each succeeding click in the
header sorts the table by the column clicked.Succeeding clicks of a column will reverse the previous sort order.I have now added a Date column so that
returning viewers can sort by it to see my most recent reviews.

Rank

Title and
Review

Venue

Times

Date

1.

Rick Wakeman
(*****)

The keyboardistwho played in the band Yes, and had long
solo career, alternates between playing the piano and providing anecdotes
from his career.He demonstrated how
his teacher had instructed him to play in different styles by playing the
Beatle’s “Eleanor Rigby” in the style of Prokofiev.This was the highpoint of this year’s
Fringe for me because it reinforced my intention to return to the piano when
I retire.

Assembly Hall

22:30 - 23:30

18

2.

The Boss of It All (*****)

An actor is hired to play
the president of a company for an important contract signing, but then things
go awry.Watching the actor wing his
way through his role with virtually knowledge of the company is hilarious.It is also revealing of how a few
well-chosen words can hide ignorance and even feign caring.

Assembly Roxy

16:15 – 17:30

8

3.

Long Live the Little Knife
(*****)

A married couple are forced
to move from their small time swindle to a big time con.Their love for each other, and the clever
and instructive cons make this a wonderful caper story.The Jackson Pollock inspired theater
furnishings and programs with the latter individually numbered were a neat
foreshadowing of the subsequent cons.

Traverse Theatre

Varies

8

4.

Super Hero Snail Boy
(*****)

In response to his big
brother’s death, an eleven year old boy starts to go through life thinking he
has super powers.This fast-paced
children’s play provides savvy techniques for children to deal with anger,
loss, and fear without being clinical.The same actor who appears in an inspired snail costume, also is the
widower whose scene of re-engaging with his daughter had me teary.

Bedlam Theatre

10:30 – 11:30

6

5.

Andrew Maxwell: Banana
Kingdom (*****)

Maxwell covered a wide
range of topics with no particular theme.It was rare that I would go more than a minute without laughing out
loud.

Underbelly: Bristo Square

19:15 - 20:15

11

6.

I (Honestly) Love You
(*****)

Two people who have a disease
that prevents them from lying find love and complications in each other’s
arms.Like good science fiction, this
show sticks to a simple premise without changing anything else.The chemistry between the couple made this
light piece special.

C Aquila

17:05 - 18:05

12

7.

’33 (A Kabarett)
(*****)

In 1933 Berlin, after every
member of his troupe has been arrested, the emcee gives snippets of each act
and provides the reasons the Nazis feared each.Bremner Duthie has a great voice which serves
all of his roles well except that of the dancer.His writing is even more powerful as his
comedian bitingly comments on the audience and the state of the Nazi society.

Hill Street Theatre

19:00 – 20:05

5

8.

It Goes Without Saying
(*****)

A professional mime mixes
humor and pathos as he speaks about his life from 1960’s Montana (a state
with people of few words) to travelling school mime to caring for his lover
during 1990’s New York City AIDs epidemic.What a combination – a world class mime, and the words of
sincerity.A silent, contorted kiss
from his dying partner cannot be forgotten.

Hill Street Theatre

22:05 -23:05

5

9.

Why is John Lennon Wearing
a Skirt? (*****)

A middle-aged woman recalls
her life rejecting the female stereotypes that society attempted to impose
upon her.Whether this is
autobiographical or not, she convincingly acted like her anger came from her
soul.Her constant wardrobe changes as
she shifted from pants to skirts and back worked well as visual evidence of
her resistance and capitulation to the demands of the culture of those times.

Hill Street Theatre

17:30 – 18:3

5

10.

Bin Laden: The One Man Show
(*****)

An actor plays Osama Bin
Laden, and tells of his life from meeting his wife at university through the
World Trade Center attack.The play
makes a convincing argument that Bin Laden was a patriot and a genius at
promoting the freedom of the Islamic countries near the Middle East.While I do not support terrorism, the
historian in me did come away admiring his courage, resilience, and devotion
to a righteous cause.

C nova

19:35 – 20:30

10

11.

Dark Vanilla Jungle (*****)

A troubled woman deals with
her continual abuse by imagining a relationship that does not exist.Gemma Whelan turns in the best performance
I have seen in years.While this is
not the most enjoyable show this year, it is a must see.

Pleasance Courtyard

15:00 - 16:15

14

12.

Ciara (*****)

The daughter of a deceased
crime lord must deal with his competitor while trying to run her art
gallery.She had a great combination
of steel, wisdom, and pain.She could
try to play the upscale entrepreneur, but her past still invaded her life.

Traverse

Varies

20

13.

The Cock Factory (*****)

This play opens with three
grocery shopper weighing choices, but the scene quickly shifts to follow the
processing of chickens from selection in the yard through butchery and
delivery to a store.This six person
physical theatre troupe epitomized the best of the Fringe for me, as it
produced a show that was creative without being incoherent.For example, they transform ordinary
shopping carts into a chicken coop, an inspection table, and then a whole
packaging conveyor system.

Cowgatehead

18:45 – 19:35

3

14.

Mercy Killers (*****)

While under arrest, a red
neck car mechanic explains how the mortgage crisis and health system led to the
death of his wife.Michael Milligan
does a great job of despairing, raging against the system, and apologizing to
his interrogator.His turmoil over
his Rush Limbaugh free market politics and his own need for a safety net was
perfect.

Assembly Hall

14:45 - 15:40

24

15.

Blues Brothers (*****)

Jake and Elwood are here to
provide ‘50s and ‘60s blues, with a horn section and back-up singers to
provide a nice big sound.My yearly
trek found that again the players had a good time, and so did the audience.I am impressed in how the show is designed
to get even the most staid old Brits up on their feet dancing by the end of
the show.

C Chambers Street

23:05 – 0:00

4 & 26

16.

Quietly (*****)

Two 52-year old Belfast men
meet in a bar to have a reconciliation over a bombing when they were 16.The work class Catholic’s rage could be
barely contained, while the stoic Protestant would not deny his youthful
ideals.Both strong men conveyed their
regrets while never backing down.

Traverse Theatre

18:30 - 19:45

22

17.

Blam! (*****)

Four Dutch office workers
slowly turn their office into an action movie set.This is a wonderful show as they transform
normal office equipment into armor, weapons, and aliens, and then do all of the
stunts you see in such movies.The
final tilting stage transformation combined with their homage to super hero
movies is just great!

Pleasance Courtyard

17:55 - 19:10

26

18.

The Play That Goes Wrong
(*****)

This is just a fun farce about
murder mystery play with all of the usual trappings.This is broad slapstick that worked
perfectly for me.I appreciated the
contortions of the actors as they tried to keep the props on the wall during
a phone call,and later tried to surreptiously lifta KO’d actress through the window.

Pleasance Courtyard

17:00 - 18:00

23

19.

Grounded (*****)

After her pregnancy, an air
force pilot is transferred from her jet to guiding an Afghan drone from Las
Vegas.While always maintaining her
fierce approach, she still conveys love for her husband and daughter.I had never thought of how mind numbing
piloting a drone would be.

Traverse Theatre

18:30 - 19:30

21

20.

Avenue Q (****)

This musical has a young college
graduate moving into an urban neighborhood populated by people and “monster” muppets.The story
is generally upbeat with good tunes and lyrics.The young cast is strong and the muppets keep things nicely quirky.

Assembly Hall

12:00 - 14:05

14

21.

Fade (****)

A journalist arrives at a
film director’s house to conduct an interview only to find that his
ex-girlfriend is also there.As the
play progresses the manipulations of the director become more and more
insidious, and dangerous for the fragile journalist.

Bedlam Theatre

21:00 – 22:00

6

22.

The Big Bite-Size Breakfast
Show (Menu 2) (****)

Six actors perform five
short, generally light, plays ranging from a debate between praying mantis lovers
to a man seeking consolation after his mother’s funeral.These breakfast shows have become a yearly
tradition for me because they are consistently satisfying, with the
croissants and coffee just a bonus.My
favorites from this menu were a tender story of a hung over woman waking to
find herself in bed next to her first lesbian lover, and a humorous story of
a BBC4 editor trying to make a script about Tourette syndrome palatable for
his conservative audience while unconsciously speaking in double entendres.

Pleasance Dome

10:30 – 11:30

7

23.

L.O.V.E.(****)

A man, woman, and a
“lovely” young man mix Shakespeare’s sonnets with physical theater.The energetic dancing/wrestling is
wonderfully evocative of the author’s lusty words.The extended scene with a very sharp pointy
knife constantly grazing the dancers was thrilling.

Assembly Roxy

11:15 - 12:30

17

24.

Eugenie Grandet
(****)

This adaptation of Balzac’s
novel has the young heiress pining for her wastrel cousin while dealing with
her miserly father.This straight
costume drama is well acted, and engrossing.From her initial naivete to her later
complex settlement, Eugenie’s growth is fascinating and rings true.

Assembly George Square

13:00 - 14:20

13

25.

Brand New Ancients (****)

A Kate Tempest raps an
entire saga while backed by a tuba, drums, violin, and cello.From the outset, Kate established a rapport
with audience I’ve seldom seen.Part
of the pleasure of this show is watching the joy with which all of the
musicians performer.

Traverse Theatre

23:15 - 0:15

22

26.

Music Show – Wedding (****)

A large Korean cast uses a
wedding and its reception as a backdrop for a vaudeville of music and
dance.The audience jumped right in as
rock and roll songs mixed with ballads, a slapstick father of the bride, and gangnam style dances.The show stopper was a soft rendition of “Over the Rainbow” on water
filled glasses.

C Chamber St.

19:55 – 20:50

19

27.

The Halcyon Days (****)

A dying woman and a
forgetful movie actor form a bond in run down old folks home.Their friendship is as natural as their
final choices.His palsied shuffle
was perfect, as was her infatuation.

Assembly Hall

11:00 - 12:15

23

28.

Fight Night (****)

Five candidates vie for
election as the audience repeatedly votes based on a variety of
attributes.Because attributes vary
from appearance to choice of election methods, this show tells us as more
about ourselves as electors than our actual political preferences.Each vote revealed something interesting
until the one that asked people to literally leave the process, because some
left because they did not like the show instead of just rejecting the
majority candidate.

Traverse Theatre

18:30 - 19:45

20

29.

Adam Hills: Happyism (****)

The Aussie comedian
continues to provide good, relatively clean humor at the expense of only
himself.As usual, his ad hoc work
with the audience members demonstrated his great improve humor.He must of spent 10 minutes mining humor
with a responsive Scottish GP.

Assembly Hall

19:30 - 20:30

23

30.

Oh My Irma (****)

After her laundress
roommate dies, a demented young woman investigates her roommate’s main
customer.The off balanced performance
dove tails perfectly with the story as it moves from chaotic to a coherent
story.The show is striking in how her
dementia often leads her from what start out as fairly innocent acts to tragic
consequences.

Hill Street Theatre

18:45 - 19:45

4

31.

Pip Utton:
Churchill (****)

The statue of Winston comes
alive once a year, and relates the high and low points of his life.As I expected, Utton
does a great job of impersonating Churchill, and selecting key aspects of his
life to explain his actions.Though I
knew much of Churchill, Utton revealed unbeknownst
aspects of his childhood, and I still the re-enactment of his famous World
War II speeches.

The Assembly Rooms

12:00 – 13:00

10

32.

Threeway (****)

The morning after an
unemployed husband, his nurse wife, and an invited Black businessman stranger
have a ménage a trois, they find that they have
switched bodies.Rather than playing
this completely for laughs, this also explores the dangers of incompetence
and the give and take of marriages.The

discoveries of the husband
turned nurse have a great blend of insight, humor, and pathos.

Pleasance Courtyard

12:30 - 13:45

15

33.

Breaking the Silence (****)

After returning from a meeting
in Warsaw of the descendants of Auschwitz survivors, a medical student pleads
with her mother and grandmother to tell her of their family history.As would be expected, the re-enactment of
scenes from the Warsaw Jewish Ghetto are powerful and disturbing, and the
deep influence on succeeding generations of those acts are also thoughtfully
explored.It is hard to imagine the
horrible pain of parents giving up their children when the Nazis took away
all children under 10 in just one day.

C nova

16:45 – 18:15

10

34.

The Pyramids of Margate
(****)

A shy, 40-year old IT man
pines for a Polish co-worker while viewing much of the world in terms of Dr.
Who of the 1970s.While he knows that
much of his life is pathetic, he does demonstrate social courage and passion
that makes him charming to me.Since
I watched Dr. Who in the 1970s, I understand the references from personal
experience, however the play provides the critical information so that even
the uninitiated will not feel left out.

Hill Street Theatre

17:15 – 18:15

4

35.

Lies My Garden Told Me
(****)

A young woman starts out to
climb a very tall tree and, by end of the day, she has befriended a
flightless baby bird, a lost spider, and a poop-loving fly.While this is a perfect children’s story,
adults will find Fleur’s physical story telling
enchanting.From a strutting bird
walking on the ground for the first time, to the spider’s tale of being
captured in a glass inside a house, she has left me with innumerable engaging
memories.

Cowgatehead

12:30 – 13:15

4

36.

The Collision of Things
(****)

After a young London
married couple rent a room to a Yorkshire fellow the threesome deals with
their difficulties in the world.As
the couple deals with estrangement, it is the roommate’s search to understand
his father that drives the show.The final
symbolic leap of faith is well conceived.

Pleasance Courtyard

17:45 - 18:45

18

37.

The Rat Pack – Live (****)

Frank, Dean, and Sammy
along with a ten-piece band and two backup singers, sign their signature
songs along with some more obscure ones.Unlike previous years, the Dean Martin impersonator actually matched Martin’s
casual phrasing instead of clipping their ends.All of the music and signing was spot on,
though few of the musicians looked like they were having a good time.

C Chamber St

19:20 – 20:15

7

38.

Boys (****)

At the end of the
university year, four diverse male roommates and their two girlfriends
recover from their party, and think about their future.This is no facile coming of age party
piece, but rather a well- crafted exploration of friendships, employment
dreams, and emotional trauma.The
30-year old hard partying waiter has his serious moments, but provides the
best comedic scene when he recounts how he tried to explain an unflushable turd to a non-English speaking girl.

C Aquila

21:00 – 22:45

19

39.

The Tin Ring (****)

Jane Arnfield
tells the true story of a young Czech Jew who lost her family and lover, but
survived the Holocaust.From an
illegal bicycle ride, to her clandestine lovers meeting in a transit station,
to her work in a Swedish factory this is a refreshing Holocaust story that
focuses more on life than death.That
is not say there are not horrific images from her starving days in a
concentration camp, it is just that the story is about her will to overcome
the obstacles.

Summerhall

20:00 - 21:05

14

40.

Stuart: A Life Backwards
(****)

An advocate for the
homeless becomes enamored with a homeless man, Stuart, with cerebral palsy,
and seeks to learn more of his past.Despite our pity for Stuart, we must reconcile his disarming charm
with his own history of violence.He
is not simple, and the play does a fine job of providing excerpts that make
his later acts understandable, if not excusable.

Underbelly Bristo Square

15:30 - 17:00

13

41.

Undone (****)

Starting from his bath in a
small tub, a muscular man, slowly dresses and tells of his family.His sinuous body as well as his
well-controlled voice permeate the whole piece. The text is poetic but a
little too dense to be processed.

Assembly George Square

16:10 - 17:10

22

42.

Ed Byrne – Roaring Forties
(****)

As the title suggests,
Byrne focuses this show on the beginning of his fifth decade.His humor continues to be gentle and
self-deprecating.

EICC

21:20 - 22:20

11

43.

Sam Rose in the Shadows
(****)

The son of an
overprotective father escapes from his house, and finds the outside world
safer than his father thought.The
stick puppets come to life and the Keeper of the Keys villain was suitably
scary for the children.This is a
children’s show with a lesson for their parents.

Bedlam Theatre

12:00 – 12:55

6

44.

Donal O’Kelly’s Skeffy (****)

In modern day Ireland, as a drunk is being
arrested he recounts the militant pacifist actions of James Joyce’s friend
Francis “Sheffy” Sheehy-Sheffinton.Between his hunger strike, and later lonely
attempt to prevent looting during the Easter Rising in 1916, Sheffy provides
an inspiring model of active pacifism.The initial brogue of the drunk was sometimes incomprehensible, but
when it came to presenting Sheffy’s life, both his speech and the story
became clear.

Hill Street Theatre

20:15 – 21:15

4

45.

Forget What You Heard
(about spoken word) (****)

This is a sort of a cabaret
for the spoken word.Two comperes present
their own work, and then mixed three established poets with open mike
volunteers for an hour.The high
quality of almost all of the work impressed me.

Cowgatehead

20:00 – 21:00

3

46.

The Trials and Tribulation
of Mr. Pickwick (****)

Nigel Nevinson
portrays the tale of Dicken’s Mr. Pickwick going to
debtors prison because of his refusal to pay a breach of marriage proposal
settlement.I have never read the
“Pickwick Papers,” but I still found his slices of English life, both mundane
and extreme, enlightening and entertaining.Among the many stories, the most memorable had the very proper
Pickwick quite vexed after he thinks he has safely returned to his room in a Labyrinthian inn only to find that real owner who arrives
shortly is a dismayed of a woman!

Hill Street Theatre

14:15 – 15:15

5

47.

Richard Herring – We’re All
Going to Die (****)

Herring finds humor in all
aspects of death, and kept the audience and me laughing most of the
time.Unlike his recent shows, he did
not do extensive research for this one, and it shows.There are more cultural references that
lost me, and the logic of his dissection of Hamlet’s “To be or not to be”
speech is badly flawed in its use of the existence of the ghost of his
father.

Pleasance Courtyard

20:00 – 21:00

9

48.

The
Pearl (****)

This is a sweet physical
theater interpretation of Steinbeck’s tale of how the discovery of a giant
pearl destroys the lives of a diver’s family.The actors do a great job of conveying their initial tender love, and
then his transformation and her dismay.The underwater scene with its fishing net jellyfish was a creative
interlude.

Pleasance Courtyard

12:30 – 13:40

9

49.

The Little Soldiers (****)

This physical theater piece
has brother circus performers vying for the attention of high wire
artist.With just ladders and ropes
the brothers aptly demonstrate their battle.A key character development has the woman stand on the ladder and uses
the ropes to manipulate the brothers as puppets.

Pleasance Dome

14:10 - 15:00

11

50.

Longing for Grace (****)

Grace Kiley plays the
spirit of Princess Grace (ne Kelly) of Monaco at her own funeral as she
reviews her life, particularly her limited choices during her reign.I found it quite illuminating to find out
that she had many affairs when an actress, and that Prince Rainier (and later
the citizens of Monaco) objected to her returning to her raison d’etre – acting.If you are not well acquainted with the movies of the 1950s, then this
play will not be for you because most of her friends were movie stars at that
time and referred to by only their first names.

Hill Street Theatre

14:30 – 15:35

4

51.

Party Piece (****)

Three men and a woman, all university
age, both party and talk about partying.This was endless fun as they spoke of their alcohol fueled
foolishness, and executed gymnastic dance routines, while maintaining the
ambience of a house party.While
their tales were often funny, they did not strain credulity.

Bedlam Theatre

22:30 – 23:25

6

52.

If These Spasms Could Speak
(****)

Thirty year old
actor/director Robert Softley talks about his life
dealing with cerebral palsy and demonstrates his current abilities and the
appearance of his body.I am grateful
for the chance to get the answers to questions I might have wondered about
and to those I should have asked.This
was one of the most rewarding shows I have attended at the Fringe.

Pleasance Courtyard

17:45 – 18:45

7

53.

I’m with the Band (****)

A four piece rock band,
symbolizing the four parts of the United Kingdom, must deal with the
energetic lead guitarist (Scotland) leaving because of financial
difficulties.For me, each member
reflected his country well, and the actual music was pretty good.The English keyboardist, in particular,
reflected England’s vitality and arrogance.

Traverse

10:00 - 11:30

13

54.

The State vs John Hayes
(****)

A condemned lesbian
prisoner talks about her life growing up, her two murders, and her two
personalities.Most of the time she
seems quite likeable, but little touches suggest an underlying menace.Between her rhapsodizing about her gun, and
her thunderous shaking of her cot, we see how each side committed its own
murder.

C nova

21:50 – 22:50

10

55.

Chalk Farm (****)

A mother must deal with her
suspicion about her teenage sons involvement in the 2011 London riots.She well coveys the love, aspirations, and
resentments of a low income single mother, and he has all the bravado that a
teenager’s lack of the sense of consequences can create.His incremental thought process as he is
drawn deeper into the riot seems quite natural.

Underbelly Cowgate

18:30 – 19:30

9

56.

TheList (****)

A woman maintains a
priority list of things to do, but a change of the priority of one item may
have cost the life of her friend.The
actress conveys both her isolation on the Canadian frontier and her consuming
regret about her part in the death.The sequence of events that must occur to lead to the death is quite
reasonable considering her friend’s fears.

Summerhall

14:00 - 15:00

16

57.

Out of the Blue (****)

The Oxford male a cappella
group returns with their good natured choreography and great sound.As I expected, they performed both upbeat
numbers and ballads with equal aplomb.Though most voices were good, I think I have become a bit jaded since
I’ve seen them five times.

Assembly George Square

14:00 - 14:50

26

58.

Preen Back Yer Lugs (****)

After countless world wars,
Scotland is the only livable place on Earth, but the Scots must deal with
emigrants from England that are organizing.This satire has a number of plot twists which allows it to probe a
range of issues besides just Scotland’s devolution.The final metamorphosis of the Scottish
leader and his huge wind turbine leave satire behind for just plain
silliness.

Pleasance Dome

12:25 - 13:45

11

59.

Missing (****)

Through dance and physical
theater we follow a woman’s effort to understand herself.Her efforts range from dealing with
co-workers while walking along a conveyor belts to being X-rayed to trying to
get comfortable sitting with a lover.The use of lit, transparent screens to isolate specific interactions
was novel and effective.

Pleasance Courtyard

13:00 - 14:05

23

60.

Jordan (****)

A woman whose abusive lover
leaves before her baby is born sets out to bring up the baby until a year
later he returns to try to legally claim the child.The story is true, and the actress does a
fine job of seeming troubled and a bit simple.As the story unfolds, I could understand
her state of mind that led to her sad decisions.Note that this is a repeat for me, and I
have it 5 stars in 2010.

Assembly Hall

13:10 - 14:25

17

61.

Robert Golding (***)

Upon completion of her restaurant,
a woman invites her husband and the architect to a quiet dinner there the
night before it opens.As the
architect firmly asserts his conspiracy theories his presentation subtly
evinces his sureness of purpose.While
most of his arguments for conspiracy were within the realm of possibility,
the Paul McCartney is dead argument destroyed his credibility and hurt the
play.

Assembly Roxy

14:20 -15:20

7

62.

The Big Bite-Size Breakfast
Show (Menu 1) (***)

Six actors perform five short,
generally light, plays ranging from a 16th century married actors
rehearsing and arguing about their life decisions to a woman and a talking
elephant who discuss running off together.As usual, the acting is top notch, but most of the stories seemed
weaker than Menu 2.The exception was
the story of a circus high-wire wife who must overcome the falling death of
her husband to start to walk the wire again.

Pleasance Dome

10:30 – 11:30

9

63.

Executed for Sodomy: the
Life Story of CaterinaLinck
(***)

This is the true story of
the trial of an early 16th century who disguised herself as a man
to become a soldier, prophet, and husband.The actress portrayed Caterina as a
believable blend ofanguish, strength,
love, and piety.It is an intriguing
historical example of a woman trying to overcome the gender stereotypical
roles forced on her by her society.

C Nova

18:30 - 19:30

17

64.

The Bunker Trilogy:
Agamemnon (***)

In a World War I bunker, a
badly injured Captain Agamemnon worries about his abandonment of his wife two
years ago while we see how she dealt with his absence.This is a reasonable adaptation of the
Greek myth, but it seemed to have a very slow pace.The fact that the play was performed in a
room the size of a bunker with no ventilation made it quite hot for the
audience, and many of us were anxious for the play to end.

C Nova

20:30 – 21:35

26

65.

The Extremists (***)

On a TV political interview
show, the author of a book on the dangers of extremism argues passionately
for its defeat at all costs.This fast
paced satire has the author arguing and gesticulating almost non-stop with a
but a few momentary comments from the interviewer.This unrelenting pace proves monotonous
and weakens the satire on blatant hypocrisy.When I suggested to a member of the company that the show would be
better with an occasional commercial break, they said that the playwright specifically
wanted the play to become mind numbing.

Assembly Roxy

12:40 – 14:00

7

66.h

Cherry On Top (***)

In South Africa, the wife
of a dying man must deal with her suspicions that he had a mistress.By using wigs and costumes, the two
actresses do a wonderful job of assuming the roles the wife, the mistress,
their mothers, a hair dresser, a waitress, and even a drunk florist.The misguided note attached to a bouquet
really hurt an otherwise fine play.

C Chamber Street

20:25 – 21:25

8

67.

Beyond Therapy (***)

After taking the advice of
her licentious therapist and his scattered therapist to place personal ads,
lonely Prudence and conflicted, ever crying bisexual Bruce meet for
dinner.Besides these four, Bruce’s
lover, and a handsome waiter round out a cast that keeps the comedy moving
right along.Though these medical
students could have played this as a broad slapstick farce, they wisely kept
that impulse in check most of the time, and allowed the words provide most of
the humor.

theSpace on the Mile

21:20 – 22:50

7

68.

Bedtime Solos (****)

A man and wife have
troubles making love because of his fear of premature ejaculation.That description sounds more clinical than
the play’s physical theater approach was.The actors were well suited to their roles, and the husband’s
soliloquy about thinking of other things during sex was quite humorous.

Assembly Roxy

11:20 - 12:20

26

69.

Nirbhaya (***)

Five real victims, an
actress, and an actor relive the abuse of six victims of horrible abuse of
women in India, Pakistan, and Chicago.While the abuse these women suffered was certainly terrible, I had
trouble seeing them reliving their experiences nightly.Somehow forcing them to perform every night
seemed another form of abuse.

Assembly Hall

16:00 - 17:30

20

70.

Losing the Plot (***)

After disappearing for
three months, an art teacher returns to his family to find that his upset
wife has written a best selling book based on his
foibles.This is light stuff that
seemed more a TV sitcom than a play.

New Town Theatre

16:20 - 17:40

21

71.

You’re a Good Man Charlie
Brown (***)

This musical has the main
characters of the Peanuts comic strip come alive and deal with the troubled
Charlie Brown.The singers had good
voices, and the choreography was well executed.There just were no show stopping highlights
to make it particularly exceptional.

St. Augistines

20:10 - 21:40

21

72.

Sympathy Pains (***)

A wife must deal with her husband
thinking that he is going to have a baby.Her patience is admirable, but his denial in the face of an ultra
sound pushed credulity.Instead of him
waking up to discover that he has “reabsorbed” the baby, it would have helped
the show if he had really acknowledged the underlying causes.

Pleasance Dome

13:40 - 14:40

18

73.

Family Tree (***)

A woman asks her boyfriend
to accept the delivery of a memorial tree for her dad’s grave, but he
repeatedly fails while dealing with her obnoxious cat.The cat was great as he tortured, and then
spoke to the boyfriend.However, the
boyfriend was not likeable, and the last scene confuses the tale as some
supposedly invisible beings are suddenly visible, and vice versa.

Pleasance Courtyard

16:30 - 17:30

18

74.

Cadre (***)

During apartheid, a young
man joins the resistance after his brother is brutally killed by the security
forces.The three actors portray a
wide range of characters well, and the plot moves along at a reasonable pace.However, the last scene in an interrogation
cell makes no sense.

Traverse Theatre

10:00 - 11:15

22

75.

Beeston Rifles (***)

A young woman and her
simpleton brother hold 19-year old brother and sister at gunpoint.The play kept my interest as a series of revelations
changes how the woman understands her situation.All four actors played their parts well,
with the drooling simpleton particularly impressive.

Underbelly

12:10 - 13:20

22

76.

Ulysses (***)

The show adapts Joyce’s
book into a fairly straightforward play about a Jew, Leopold Bloom, in
Dublin, his bawdy wife, Molly, and her lover.This version follows Bloom as he attempts to wind his way through life
without angering the populace too much.Molly’s lively exploits serve as a counterpoint to Bloom’s depressing
life.

Paterson’s Land

19:00 - 21:20

18

77.

Substance (***)

When the boss of a trio of
drug dealers adds a new woman to the age old partnership things start to go
awry.Though the boss does little
productive work, his menace drives the whole operation and play.After her initial disaffection, I felt that
female partner’s aid to the new woman evolve naturally.

C nova

20:40 – 21:40

10

78.

London Road, Sea Point (***)

In South Africa, a
friendship develops between a dotty old white woman and her upstairs neighbor
who is a Black female drug dealer.While the upstairs woman is initially reluctant, the relationship
deepens as the generosity and dependence of the downstairs woman wins her
over.The older woman was portrayed as
a winning combination of quirky forgetfulness and love.

Assembly George Square

13:50 – 14:55

19

79.

Feral (***)

First, three cast members create
a miniature, peaceful town with cardboard and stick puppets, and then they
add a casino.The little details in
the shops and the use of mini-cams makes the town a wonder to explore.Though the degradation of the town
continued apace, the novelty of the presentation wore off.

Summerhall

20:00 - 20:50

16

80.

Breakfast Plays: A
Respectable Widow Takes To Vulgarity (***)

After her CEO husband dies,
his widow enlists a young worker to help her better understand her husband
and herself.Her efforts at stilted
efforts at vulgarity matched his reluctance to help her to learn his
slang.Most telling was the moment she
realized that her peers did not notice her use of swear words because they
were not really listening to her.

Traverse

9:00 - 9:45

13

81.

The Radicalisation
of Bradley Manning (***)

This follows the life of
the Wiki Leak whistle blower from childhood through his military trial.This is a big production with many
instances of his abuse, and his own immodesty.Somehow its size, particularly a scene of
guards keeping him awake, serves to obscure rather than inform the real
issues involved.

Pleasance@St Thomas of Aquin’s High
School

19:30 - 21:00

15

82.

Have I No Mouth (***)

One of those shows about a mother
and son dealing with the death of the father that is well done, but leaves
nothing memorable behind.

Traverse Theatre

21:00 - 22:10

20

83.

The Price of Everything
(***)

Starting with the price of a
pint of milk, Daniel Bye explores how we assign values to things.Bye makes many interesting points, but the
whole show feels thin.His
fictionalized sale of an air guitar on eBay was a master stroke that sucked
me in.

Hill Street Theatre

10:30 - 11:30

21

84.

La Merda(The Shit) (***)

A naked woman on a pedestal
portrays a dwarf who wants to make it as an actress.As would be expected from her state, she
takes things to extremes with repeated bouts of screaming about her dream of
success.This is a play to be
experienced because it is so off beat, but not because it is particularly
enjoyable.

Summerhall

12:30 - 13:30

21

85.

Conversations Not Fit for
the American Dinner Table (***)

By donning masks, an actor
becomes different archetypes of American society.Though he tries to mimic the style of each
type, his liberal bias is evident throughout.Even though I am a liberal, I found his use of such straw dogs boring.

Bedlam Theatre

15:00 - 16:00

18

86.

The Events (***)

Backed by a different local
chorus each day, the choir mistress tries a wide range of rituals with the
choir to deal with a mass killing of some of the diverse singers.She almost tries to deal with the killer,
her lesbian lover, and a right wing politician.The whole play jumps around too much, and
even some members of the chorus seemed distracted at times.

Traverse

10:00 - 11:30

15

87.

Lauder! (***)

Using puppetry and
multimedia, this show tells of a young boy trying to understand that is his
father died in the World Trade Center tragedy.Unhappily, I did not know the premise
beforehand, and found the story confounding.Tim loved it though.

Summerhall

16:30 - 17:30

16

88.

The Three Little Pigs (***)

In South Africa, the world
is populated by talking animals with the police trying to solve the murder of
two pigs.The mixing of different
species, and their proclivities was cute, and the mystery genuine.Somehow the show just never grabbed me.

Assembly George Square

17:45 - 18:45

13

89.

Pendulums Bargain Emporium
(***)

This a satire on how things
are marketed without real thought of their worth using an artisan cobbler as
an example.While it seemed plausible that
accepting mass produced shoes would lead to more profit, the story moves away
from the loss of craft to the problem of unwise loans.The skill of the actors was fine, I just
would have preferred a less one sided presentation.

Pleasance Dome

16:20 - 17:20

11

90.

Missing (***)

This delves into the topic
of missing people in Great Britain with emphasis on two real cases in the
past.Though the events are harrowing,
this was more expository than drama.I
was surprised to find out that if a missing child is not found within 24
hours, the odds are that he/she will have been killed.

Underbelly

20:05 - 21:05

13

91.

Bath Time (***)

This one man show explores
the life and times of a petty thief who gets mixed up with a professional
micro-chip stealing gang.His
performance is appropriately gritty, and clear.It just seemed like another Fringe solo
performance with nothing particularly thought provoking.

Gilded Balloon Teviot

15:15 - 16:15

11

92.

Canary Gold
(***)

This show
starts out with a musical number, and then traces the history of two con jobs
involving wine from the Canary Islands.The voices are great, as are many of the songs, but the action is
needlessly choppy as it jumps from 17th century to present and one
con to another.

C Chambers Street

12:10 - 13:20

25

93.

Shakespeare
for Breakfast (***)

This year the
company adapts the “Taming of the Shrew” to have Kate Mddleton
as Kate and Prince William as Petruchio.Despite the mismatch of personalities, the
cast has a lot of fun portraying the real people against type.As usual, the many pop culture references
were lost on me, but enjoyed by the British audience.

C Chambers Street

10:00 - 11:00

26

94.

An Actor’s
Lament (***)

Steven Berkoff wrote, directed, and stars in this tale of a
meeting of a renowned actor, his playwright friend, and an actress.The story is fine, but Berkoff’s
acting is way over the top throughout.On the other hand, the actress takes the opportunity to exploring the
range of her character without revealing herself.

Assembly Hall

14:30 – 15:30

9

95.

Titus
Andronicus: An All-Female Production (***)

Eight women
perform Shakespeare’s first, and bloodiest play that is about manipulation
and revenge.The play was a bit
confusing as the sons of the Queen also played the sons of Andronicus with
only minor costume differences.The
use of paint brushes for swords, and paint cans of “blood” allowed the blood
to flow in the copious amounts that is to be expected.

Bedlam Theatre

19:30 – 20:35

6

96.

The Boy Who
Kicked Pigs (***)

This black
comedy has an evil teenage brother who bedevils his nicer younger sister
including kicking her pig toys.While
the nastiness of the brother is the center of the play, the white-faced cast
takes time to lampoon other subjects such as an oblivious newspaper.It just does not say much except that nasty
people deserve to be punished.

Pleasance Courtyard

16:10 – 17:20

9

97.

Track 3 (***)

This version
of Chekov’s“Three Sisters” covers
most of the story of three sisters and brother stuck in a backwater town in
Czarist Russia.The acting was good,
and the story well told.It is just
that nothing leaps to mind as particularly exceptional.

Bedlam Theatre

16:25 – 17:35

6

98.

Women Who Wank (***)

Despite its
title, this show had little to do with sex most of the time.Instead, the actress attempted to do
improve based on the atmosphere of the venue and audience rather than the
more typical audience suggestions.She tried to use acceptance to deal with two obnoxious hecklers, but
they just thrived on the attention and got worse.

Cowgatehead

22:30 -23:30

8

99.

Noodles (***)

Four female gymnasts
and a male clown interact with a variety of “noodles.”Though they do one tightrope act, the bulk
of the show is focused on rope work that could not sustain my interest.One novel trick had three women on one rope
with two pulleys between them so that when the outside women rolled, the
inside woman’s loop would shrink or expand.

New Town Theatre

12:45 – 13:55

5

100.

I Need a
Doctor: The UnauthorisedWhosical
Adventure (***)

A young fellow
and woman create a low budget homage to Dr. Who while avoiding copy right
infringement.Their inexpensive
rendition of the props of the series are fun.However, even that joke gets tired when it is the driving force of the
show.

Pleasance Courtyard

14:30 – 15:30

8

101.

Storming the Barricade
(***)

Two women and
two men perform a wide range of show tunes.All their voices were fine, and their selection was diverse.The choreography was minimal, and there
were no introductions to place a song within its context.

inSpace@Symposium Hall

16:20 – 17:20

24

102.

Julien Cottereau: Imagine Toi (***)

Julien is not
silent, but a non-verbal mime who relies on highly amplified noises he makes
to inform his actions.His early
routine with a lassoed fly was well done, though not original.Much of the rest of the show has audience
participants trying to follow his signed instructions which can be fun, but
much of the fun is at the expense of the participant.

Assembly Roxy

12:55 -14:05

8

103.

Dear Doctor
Cullen (***)

Three speakers
review the letters of Doctor William Cullen, one of the foremost physicians
of the 18th century.Both
the unsolicited letters to the doctor asking for medical advice, as well as
his courteous and now mostly bizarre prescriptions provided an excellent
measure of the state of the medicine during his life.While no charlatan, his unshakeable faith
in his diagnoses and prescriptions demonstrated that science, with its
repeatable experiments, was still in its infancy.

Royal College of Physicians

11:00 – 12:00

5

104.

H to He (I’m
Turning Into a Man) (***)

A middle-aged
woman wakes up to find that she is becoming a man.While some would say this a metaphor for
menopause, I see it as a woman noting the stereotypical differences between
the sexes.Though her dealing with her
transformation from a plain, paunchy woman into a handsome, fit man is fun,
it seemed shallow, particularly when it came to her sexual thoughts and
persistent scratching.

Hill Street Theatre

20:35 – 21:35

5

105.

Annoying the
Neighbors (***)

While
listening on an ipod as a prompter, Louise Wallinger plays the people she hears as they tell of
their annoying neighbors.The stories
range from a man who tapes alarm clocks on his celing
to wake the upstairs at random times, to a man who argues that a building
permit like his should not be granted to an adjacent neighbor.The stories are entertaining, there just
was nothing exceptional here.

Hill Street Theatre

15:45 – 16:45

5

106.

Four Walls
(***)

A young girl
creates a fantasy world of arguing slippers, a helpful grandmother clock, a
jaded teapot, and a mirrored image.Though in hindsight the foreshadowing and symbolism of the first
two-thirds of the play was clever, as I experienced it, it was unproductive.While the interactions of the animated
objects were fun at times, the psychologist seemed too flat and clinical.

Bedlam Theatre

13:30 – 14:30

6

107.

Solpadeine is My Boyfriend (***)

An overweight woman
faces the challenges of relying on Solpadeine (an
over the counter drug containing paracetamol,
caffeine, and codeine) to make it through each day.She was likeable enough, and the seemingly
autobiographical story was interesting, it just never wowed me.Her adventure in a runaway hot-wired car
was the highpoint.

Underbelly Bristo Square

12:30 - 13:30

26

108.

Breaker (***)

A fellow comes to a small
island where a group of children has recently drowned to learn of his family’s
past, and learns of life there from the lonely schoolteacher.I found the teacher the more interesting as
she alternately felt a need for companionship and then a need to protect the
privacy of the children and herself.With its title, and an early description of freak waves, it seemed
clear that the children had been washed away, but the story casts doubt on
that for no clear reason.

Under belly

14:00 - 15:00

22

109.

Big Bite
Breakfast (Menu 3) (***)

This is the weakest of the three
menus, each with five short plays.From a self- centered man practicing before meeting his ex-girlfriend
for coffee, to an interpreter dealing with two abusive clients, none of these
has an interesting insight, or much cleverness.

Pleasance Dome

10:30 - 11:30

25

110.

Genesis/Golgotha
(***)

One play has
Eve complaining about Adam and God, and the other play has Jesus roaming 21st
century Pittsburg.Mark Twain covered
Eve’s story with humor and wit, and Jesus’ rant was incoherent much of the time.

Assembly George Square

12:30 - 13:30

18

111.

HeLa (***)

In the 1950s,
a poor Black woman suffering from cancer unknowingly supplied the cells that
have been the basis of most cellular research.The one woman show uses a mixture of
stories of Henrietta Lack’s life, and a video about the HeLa
cells use.Theeducational video is very informative, but
detracts from the drama of her life.

Summerhall

18:45 - 19:45

16

112.

Morag and Keats (***)

We have all the standard
characters from film noir, like “The Maltese Falcon” with Sam being a police
detective, played for laughs.The
femme fatale had Lauren Bacall down pat, but the gay police chief has no
place in the setting.There is some
witty and evocative lines, but the underlying story is mundane.

C nova

18:30 – 19:25

10

113.

Forest Boy (***)

Based on a true story, a
young boy emerges from a German forest and claims that he has been living there
for five years, when it has actually only been a few weeks.The central story about the boy’s
difficulties with becoming a man in his father’s eyes was interesting, but
the production was uninspiring.Though
there were some good voices, both the lyrics and music were below
average.

Assembly George Square

15:20 – 16:20

19

114.

The Waiting Room (***)

A man, a wife, a kidnapper,
and the man’s mistress all find themselves in a room with no doors and windows,
and try to figure out what to do next.Though initially the switches of allegiances were interesting and
somewhat plausible, by the end the play had devolved into an incoherent
farce.

Assembly George Square

11:30 – 12:30

19

115.

Brush (***)

An artist who has not lived
up to his promise must deal with his artist roommate who is advancing
quickly.Throw in some unneeded
homosexual pining, and you have the whole plodding plot.As is often the case, the acting was fine,
but there was language and

C Nova

19:40 - 20:40

17

116.

Solomon and Marion (***)

In South Africa, a young
Black man begins helping an elderly white woman.This is similar to “London Road, Sea
Point,” but less interesting.

Assembly Hall

14:30 - 15:45

15

117.

Freak Show (***)

This musical gives a little
taste of a 19th century traveling freak show with the bulk of the
time spent on their back stage lives.With less chorus work than in “Forest Boy,” the weak voices become
more apparent.The music and undecipherable
lyrics again did little for me.

Assembly George Square

15:20 - 16:20

12

118.

Credible Likeable Superstar
Role Model (***)

The actress Bryony Kimmings
pairs with her 9-year old niece to present a piece about the sexualization of female preteens.Instead of focusing on the topic, Bryony
spends a lot of time on her own characteristics, particularly her
self-centeredness, which is quite in evidence throughout.I thought it appropriate and clever that
the niece would be asked to cover her ears (as did the mother next to me ask
her daughter) when the text became too adult.

Pleasance Dome

17:45 - 18:45

11

119.

Pants On Fire’s Pinocchio
(***)

This story of Pinocchio was
just too disjoint for me to enjoy.

Pleasance Courtyard

13:00 - 14:15

12

120.

Ballad of the Burning Star
(***)

A cabaret about the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict is dominated by the compere, and is just too
loud and abrasive for the whole time.

Pleasance Dome

17:15 – 18:35

19

121.

Kubrick3 (***)

Based on the true story of
Alan Conway, who fraudulently impersonated Stanley Kubrick, four actors play
Conway as he recounts his life of failure and lies to his son.The use of four actors maybe a nod to his
many personalities, but adds needless confusion since none represents a
separate set of characteristics.We
see the acts of the man, but not the underlying causes.

Pleasance Courtyard

19:10 - 20:00

12

122.

Breakfast Plays: Clean
(***)

Three women play expert criminals
with different talents that are hired to make an international heist a la
Mission Impossible.The play wants to
show women filling the roles of action heroes with less violence.The three characters are appropriately over
the top, but the plot and their interactions do not transfer well from video
game to play.

Traverse

9:00 - 9:45

14

123.

The Break-up of Cause and
Effect (***)

Two fellows portray the
bickering pair of associated concepts: cause and effect.This seems like a secondary school skit by
teachers trying to clarify the two concepts.It just doesn’t merit 50 minutes.

C Nova

20:50 - 21:40

17

124.

Working on a Special Day
(***)

On the day Hitler visits
Rome, and homosexuals will start to be rounded up, a gay man comes to the aid
of his downstairs neighbor as she tries to manage a household of six
children.The developing friendship
was sweet, but this slice of life was too thin for me.The use of chalk on the chalkboard walls to
slowly decorate her apartment worked well.

Assembly George Square

11:10 - 12:10

16

125.

Cartwheels (***)

An unmarried pregnant
student, her lover, and her assertive flat-mate argue about abortion, and other
issues of pregnancy.The expectant
character has just the right mix of conflict, but her flat mate seems a
little over the top.The picnic scene
when they are surrounded by hundreds of miniature fetuses is too weird to fit
with the rest of the play

C nova

23:00 – 0:00

10

126.

Overcoat (***)

This is a Chinese
interpretation of Gogol’s story of the effects of a minor Czarist bureaucrat
purchasing an impressive overcoat.Though the actress is talented, she seems too cute and lively to play
the somber, inconsequential Russian.

C Chamber Street

21:50 – 23:05

9

127.

The Principle of
Uncertainty (***)

This is a lecture that
attempts to explain Heisenberg’s assertion that the act of observing a quanta
will change it so that you can know either its original location, or its
original momentum, but not both at the same time.The use of videos was useful, but in the
end this a lecture that lacks much drama.

Summerhall

18:15 - 19:30

25

128.

Newton (***)

Jack Klaff
plays a seemingly endless set of contemporaries of Sir Isaac Newton to
provide a biography of the scientist.Though Klaff is a fine actor, this method of
exploration means that a good quarter of the hour is spent by Klaff introducing the characters.

Summerhall

17:00 - 18:15

14

129.

Next Door (***)

A Dane and a Fin
investigate how two neighbors could not know each other by looking at their
lives.This is quiet Danish physical
theater that relies on too much subtlety, and childish simplicity for me.

Underbelly

18:45 - 19:45

24

130.

The Seven Deadly Sins (***)

This Brecht play has a
young 1930s movie actress committing all of the sins as she aspires for
stardom.The full orchestra provided
an engaging score.However, the
enactment of all but one of the sins was too obscure to identify them.

Paterson’s Land

22:30 - 23:15

21

131.

Theatre Uncut: Dalgety and Fragile (***)

“Fragile” has the audience
read liberal responses to an actor who addresses the recent severe government
spending cuts, and “Dalgety” has a young open
minded constable and her rigid sergeant deal with a counter culture gathering
in their little Scottish town.I found
“Fragile” too manipulative and not clever at all.“Dalgety” was
more fun as the constable attempts to understand the visitors while her
sergeant keeps overreacting to the peaceful group.

Paterson’s Land

15:00 - 16:00

23

132.

Hirsh (***)

This homage to the
influential Canadian theater director, John Hirsch, is told by one of his
former actors, AlonNashman.The Hungarian immigrant certainly seemed to
have a dramatic life, but the story reveres the man without really explaining
him.The actor states that he was
Hirsh’s abused scapegoat for years, but never explains why Nashman holds him in such high personal regard.

Pleasance Courtyard

14:05 - 15:15

20

133.

Chastity Butterworth &
the Spanish Hamster (***)

Full of winks, nods, and
mugging, Gemma Wheeling’s character has little to say that is that
funny.The bulk of the show relies on
audience participation both on and off the stage.What a letdown after her stellar
performance in “Dark Vanilla Jungle.”

Assembly Roxy

17:45 - 18:35

24

134.

Bridge to an Island (***)

A young woman tries to deal
with her social difficulties by writing stories that come alive but then, to
her horror, always end badly.The
stories are short, and the constant offstage wardrobe changes by the two
story actors take too long and make the play too choppy.After the first couple of stories, the play
becomes repetitive and boring.

C nova

14:15 – 15:15

10

135.

Rave Generaton
(***)

A young teacher who
advocates the legalizing the drug ecstasy tries to convince the school
officials of his view.While his teaching
of the free dancing of raves to his young charges seemed innocent enough, his
choice to secretly drug his superiors taints his efforts.The main problem is that the whole play is
one sided with no effort to deal with the negative side effects of ecstasy
use.

Paradise in Augustines

16:50 - 17:25

25

136.

Erik and Little Ern (***)

Starting as Little Ern lies on his deathbed, the two men play the famous
British TV comic duo, and re-enact some of their classic routines.Since I knew nothing of the pair, most of
their 1950s humor seemed dated and did not resonate.On the other hand, the British audience had
moist eyes from fond reminiscing, and would give it five stars.

Gilded Balloon Teviot

15:15 - 16:15

26

137.

Journey to X (***)

A group of secondary school
friends form a singing group with the intent of going to London and becoming
famous on “The X Factor,” with a planned side trip to an abortionist.The kids are appropriately inept at their
initial attempts at choreography, but they never achieve the professionalism
that is expected in the final set piece for such stories.While I would have thought that abortion
would be the thorniest issue, it’s best section it dealt with morality of the
pick pocketing a pensioner’s money by a friend to help cover the expense of
an abortion.

Set in the 1980s of
Thatcher, we watch as a television station staff battles within itself for
personal advancement.I rarely
understood the lyrics, and so most of the play was just so much
unintelligible bombast and dance moves.

Zoo Southside

21:00 - 22:30

12

139.

Somnambules and the Seven Deadly Sins (**)

I’m guessing that two
Russian dancers attempt to portray the seven deadly sins.Though they are both fine dancers, the
choreography feels like an uninspired rehash of the Derevo
works of the past few years.Worse
still, their movements gave no clues to me as to which sin they were
currently performing.

Summerhall

21:30 - 22:35

14

140.

Voices Made Night (**)

This South African physical
theater company creates a series of fables.Many made little sense to me.There
was one that I understood where an old weak man decides to dig a grave for
his ill wife with the expected finale.

Assembly Hall

16:10 - 17;40

15

141.

Anna (**)

Based on the life of a
journalist who risked her life to expose the abuses of the Russian military
and government, this play took place in an unventilated corridor with
audience standing against the two walls.The facts are dramatic, but the heat and constant yelling was
overpowering for those of us in the audience.What made it worse is that most lines were repeated twice by each
actor, even if they were suppose to be the
reasonable victims.

Summerhall

20:30 - 21:30

25

142.

PussyFooting (**)

The feet of three women
take on a life of their own while their male friends try to help them.Despite the play starting with two feet
speaking to each other, which could have provided an interesting commentary,
the play restricted itself to how the humans deal with each other’s
ordeal.The act of drawing each set
and its props on various sized chalkboards was fine the first time, but too
time consuming for later scenes.

C nova

13:20 – 14:10

10

143.

The Ribbon Tied (**)

A young woman returns to her
hometown to share a pizza and a movie in the bedroom of her ex-boyfriend with
the possibility of rekindling their relationship clearly on both their
minds. This slice of life story seemed too thin as it crawled along at
a slow, naturalistic pace. While I liked a thoughtful gift of two
bottle caps, throughout the play, particularly at points of high
emotion, I felt the actress was trying to act her part rather than be her
character.

Cowgatehead

17:30 – 18:30

3

144.

Sentinels (**)

This devised piece starts
with fourteen statues stand on pedestals, and then we hear of some of their
long forgotten histories.Though their
singing was quite good, few of their tales held my interest.

Bedlam Theatre

13:30 – 14:30

6

145.

Caryatid Unplugged (**)

Caryatid, a pedestal taken
by the British from the Acropolis and placed in the British Museum in the
early 19th century, complains of her plight, and that of the
Greeks now.While there were a few
cute parts, the bulk of the show held little for anyone but the Greeks in the
audience.

Hill Street Theatre

21:45 – 22:35

4

146.

35MM : A Musical Exhibition
(**)

This devised show that
displays a picture on a screen then provides stories and music that may or may
not relate to the picture.Some of the
vignettes were interesting, but the lack of cohesion left me tired.

Bedlam Theatre

18:00 – 19:05

6

147.

My Favourite
Madman (**)

This play starts has a
professor, a nurse, and seven newspapermen in Azerbaijan all running around
in mayhem.Though things settle down
after a while, the main feature remains that all but one is crazy, and the
constant insanity bored me after a while.I did find funny the running gag of one man constantly seeing lovers
and friends from his past lives and then trying to prove that they were his
reincarnated comrades.

Gryphon Venues at the Point
Hotel

18:20 – 19:50

8

148.

Cut! (**)

Ian Watt plays a fictional
silent film director named Posteranz who is loosely based on the notoriously
dictatorial Erich Von Stroheim.The
play chooses to concentrate on Posteranz megalomaniac tendencies by having
the man ordering people around and ranting in general most of the time.This one dimensionality combined with a
German accent so thick as to be occasionally unintelligible created a show
that quickly bored me.

Hill Street Theatre

16:05 – 17:00

4

149.

A Happy Side (As Well) (**)

This devised played has
friends and teachers try to get a silent student to speak.This secondary school production is a
misguided mash-up of teenage recollections, audience participation, and
treatises on life.The only saving
grace was the sincerity and naivete of the young
actresses.

Greenside

16:15 – 17:00

7

150.

Omega (**)

Assembly Hall

14:35 - 15:45

21

151.

The Secret Agent (**)

This show starts out by
inviting audience members on stage to surround a table, and then does nothing
with them.That was a foreshadowing of
what the show did with a plot following a minor spy – nothing, and it did it
for 90 minutes!

Traverse Theatre

20:30 - 22:00

22

152.

Pigmalion Zoo (*)

Pigmalion and his wife are trying to create the next god for
a game show.There is little here but
the continue mistreatment of their daughter.

C nova

15:30 – 16:30

10

I am a 60-year
old Computer Science lecturer from the University of California in Davis who
thinks even a bad play is better than no play at all.Besides teaching, I work as a house painter /
handyman to earn the extra money to pay for my travels.I have been to the Fringe nine times
before.Ten years ago, after two weeks
touring France, my wife and I spent nine days of our honeymoon at the
Fringe.We shared 45 plays, and I attended
ten other events besides.In 2005, I
fulfilled a dream of seeing an entire Fringe Festival.Since then, I have been here for the whole
Fringe every year except 2007.I have
learned to devote most days to only one venue to maximize the number of performances
I can see.I expect this year to be
similar to last—many performances, and many new friends.

After
attending more than 1000 performances, I have a much better idea of my biases
and prejudices in the role of a critic.To limit my analyzing shows during their performances as much as
possible, I have intentionally avoided any training in criticism and the
dramatic arts, both formal and informal.I find that I prefer fact to fiction, innovation to repetition, coherence
to creativity, the concrete to the symbolic, and cleverness to depth.I realize that many of these are antithetical
to the spirit of the Fringe, but I cannot deny my nature.In particular, I just do not like shows that
push the bounds of creativity beyond my ability to make sense of them.Because I choose to fill time slots with
whatever is available, I still expose myself to such shows, and do not
mind.However, I do feel a little guilty
giving a low rating to a show on which a company has worked so hard, and with
such commitment. Nevertheless, I
envision that that is my role—to accurately report my enjoyment so that others
may better use my ratings.In all but a
very few cases, I admire the effort of each company, and wish them well.